Xico’s Journey – Two Scenes Tell You A Lot

In the first scene nothing of significance happens. Just an annoying kid messing up and then trying to get those she has put out to help clear up the mess she made. There are huge issues apparent immediately. The animation is odd and off putting, as is the style – and certainly not something you’d use in a feature.

The titular character (the dog) has been relegated to third wheel at best. The dialogue is unnatural and the beats follow-on is random and unconvincing. It is jarring, and not by intention. I’ve never seen anything that so much did the opposite of adding up to something.

There are other inconsistencies too, such as that guy who laughs at self and with crown when his underpants on the washing line are there for the world to see, but in the next shot we see him he is having quite a different reaction. This is not just an animation error, as this sort of thing is happening low-key with other characters too.

So then we get to the second scene. The villain is overly over the top with no substance, that much is obvious in seconds. And what does it turn out he’s all evil over? Fracking. Let’s just ignore the fact that fracking doesn’t actually work that way, and say no more. It is not what I’m here to talk about. It is clear as day that the creators have made this whole film solely so they can on about how evil they think fracking is.

At best, this is shoving political agenda in your face – and very obviously at that. I turned off before he could say ‘fracking’ for the third or fourth time.